This morning, Point Fish Fry & A Flick announced that it will make a triumphant return to the lakefront late this summer. The fish-enhanced film festivities start up once again at Discovery World on July 18 at 5 p.m. – the movies themselves start rolling at dusk – and run every other week through Sept. 19 (save for an extra week off in late August).

As with last year, the free film series also offers a Wisconsin fish fry brought to you by Bartolotta Restaurants and tasty, hoppy beverages provided by Stevens Point Brewery.

One important detail left out of this morning’s press release? The flicks to be shown. The lineup – bumped back up to five screenings from just three last year – will be revealed on May 19, but until then, allow me to throw some ideas – and a few hopeful stretches – into the ring (add your own picks in the comments). Fingers crossed for five screenings of "Heaven Is for Real"!

What better way to wash down a night of beer, friends, fish and chips than with a movie about beer, friends, fish and chips (OK, not the last two, but it takes place in Britain so we can assume)?

"The World’s End" isn’t exactly the blockbuster Fish Fry & A Flick usually goes for, like last year’s trifecta of "Ted," "The Avengers" and "Django Unchained" (it managed to get outgrossed by the secretly massive flop "R.I.P.D., which takes some doing), but I’d say it qualifies a strong cult selection. Plus, it’s hilarious, throwing jokes, catchphrases and awesomely entertaining man vs. robot action sequences around with kinetic yet precise glee.

If "The World’s End" isn’t one of the flick picks (a movie about alcoholism admittedly might not flow the best with a night of beer-soaked festivities, but hey, it’s not "Flight"), I will also accept Edgar Wright’s "Hot Fuzz," "Shaun of the Dead" or "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World." All are delightfully energetic, funny and action packed enough to satisfy all.

"Airplane!" or "Blazing Saddles"

When it comes to the greatest comedies of all time, "Airplane!" and "Blazing Saddles" are pretty much locked in the gold and silver medal spots on my personal podium (which one is gold and which one is silver depends on a coin flip, really). Few movies have a better jokes delivered to jokes hit ratio than "Airplane!" and "Blazing Saddles" is one of the sharpest, slyest comedies of all time (that could absolutely never be greenlit today).

They’re both hilarious and would make for a satisfying night of belly laughs and belly-filling fish (though if "Airplane!" is picked, fish might not be the best choice).

"The Raid"

Yes, it’s foreign film with subtitles, but past selection "Inglourious Basterds" is essentially a foreign film too. And what "The Raid" lacks in Brad Pitt and Christoph Waltz, it certainly makes up for in incredible action. The first film and its sequel – currently in theaters – feature some of the best, most intensely choreographed and all-in-all brutal action to hit the screen in eons.

It is completely awesome, and if you’re really that worried that much about reading subtitles, take solace in knowing that there’s probably about 20 lines of dialogue in the whole movie. The rest is told using the universal language of kicks to the face.

It would make sense to pick one recent hit, and while last year is a little skimpy on terrific blockbuster hits (though "Gravity" could also be awesome set against the lake and night sky), "Iron Man 3" would be a great choice. It’s just a damn fun movie, thanks to the combination of Robert Downey Jr.’s usual smirkingly cocksure self and Shane Black’s smartly snarky ’80s action movie crackle.

The tandem’s 2005 effort "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," made before RDJ’s return to fame, is probably too small to even be worth throwing into the ring (to your Netflix queues!), but "Iron Man 3" is a terrific, and probably even better, consolation.

"Big Trouble in Little China"

John Carpenter’s 1986 fairly new cult classic is absolutely wack-a-doodle (that’s a technical term), featuring rival kung fu gangs, evil sorcerers, crazy ’80s special effect transformations and Kurt Russell as one of the most entertainingly incompetent action heroes in action film history. It’s bizarrely wonderful – it qualifies as another movie that could never be made today, less for its political incorrectness and mostly for its utter unrepentant fantastical silliness – and if you haven’t seen it already, give it a watch. Perhaps even at Fish Fry & A Flick (wink, wink guys)?

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About Matt Mueller

As much as it is a gigantic cliché to say that one has always had a passion for film, Matt Mueller has always had a passion for film. Whether it was bringing in the latest movie reviews for his first grade show-and-tell or writing film reviews for the St. Norbert College Times as a high school student, Matt is way too obsessed with movies for his own good.

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